


A Tiny Spark Of Warmth

by Natsumiya_Teirin



Category: Natsume Yuujinchou | Natsume's Book of Friends
Genre: Christmas, Christmas Fluff, Couch Cuddles, F/M, Gen, NatsuYuu Secret Santa 2020, Natsume Takashi Protection Squad
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-15
Updated: 2020-12-15
Packaged: 2021-03-10 16:54:35
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,106
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28080501
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Natsumiya_Teirin/pseuds/Natsumiya_Teirin
Summary: It is not his first Christmas in Hitoyoshi, but it's no less precious than the ones preceding it.
Relationships: Fujiwara Shigeru & Fujiwara Touko & Natsume Takashi, Fujiwara Shigeru/Fujiwara Touko, Kitamoto Atsushi & Natsume Takashi & Nishimura Satoru, Natsume Takashi & Shibata Katsumi, Natsume Takashi & Taki Tooru & Tanuma Kaname, Ogata Yuriko & Natsume Takashi
Kudos: 24





	A Tiny Spark Of Warmth

**Author's Note:**

  * For [mikazuki21](https://archiveofourown.org/users/mikazuki21/gifts).



Snow falls lightly from the dark sky, tiny flakes fluttering down like wild flower petals, but inside the Fujiwara house, it is warm and bright. 

There is a Christmas tree in the living room- a decently sized pine tree Takashi had chosen and Shigeru had cut- and it lights up the house like a guiding beacon.   
Takashi himself is settled on the couch, bundled up in a thick sweater Touko had lovingly knitted for him last Christmas, with one of Shigeru's handmade mugs held tightly in his hands. His guardians themselves are otherwise occupied- Touko is in the kitchen putting the final touches on Christmas dinner, and Shigeru is picking up Katsumi and Yuriko from the train station.

A sudden clatter from the genkan is shortly followed by the sounds of various shoes falling to the floor under excited hands, and Takashi smiles as Satoru and Atsushi enter into the living room. In front of them, Nyanko-sensei waddles imperiously and leaps onto Takashi's lap as Satoru grumbles. 

"-cat kept tripping me on the way here! I swear, Natsume! That pig-cat lives to torment me!" He complains as he flops down on the sofa beside Takashi and Nyanko-sensei. Kaname enters with a small smile on his face and a small box in his hands.   
"A gift from my father," he says, bending to set it down at the base of the tree. 

Takashi nods his head slowly.   
"Thank you- Natori sent some gifts, too," he says, in an attempt not to sound awkward.

  
Satoru perks up slightly. 

"Oh? What'd he send?"   
Takashi shrugs his shoulders.   
"Talismans," he says, feigning surprise. Satoru gapes.

"Talismans? Seriously? Like the stuff you see in old exorcist movies?" He throws his hands up and looks pointedly at Atsushi. 

"Can you believe this?" He demands. "Can you believe this?" He repeats, gesturing towards Takashi. 

"It's Christmas, and Natori freaking Shuuichi sends this guy- his friend- freaking Ofuda!"   
He sounds so offended it must be fake, and the three of them share a laugh. 

Touko comes in with a tray full of steaming mugs of hot cocoa and sets it down on the coffee table with a light laugh. 

"My, you're all so lively! Somehow, I don't think we'll have any leftovers this Christmas!" She chuckles fondly, her smile something warm and bright and perfectly suited for the holiday.

She retreats back to the kitchen and Nyanko-sensei jumps off Takashi's lap to follow her just as the front door rattles open again. 

"I'm home!" Shigeru calls out jovially. He steps into the room, followed by Katsumi, Yuriko, and Tooru, and Takashi blanches as Satoru tries and fails to hide his laughter. 

Dressed in a hideous Santa suit that is too bright to be good on anyone, Shigeru smiles at them as Tooru easily sits on Takashi's other side. 

"We ran into Taki-san on the way back," Yuriko chimes in. Katsumi looks anxious, like he's expecting a youkai to pop out from the Christmas tree. Satoru rolls his eyes and gets up only to tug him down so his cheek rests against Takashi's knee. 

".....hi." Katsumi says simply, tilting his head just so to look at Takashi's fond amusement.

Takashi lets out an amused puff of air. 

"Hi to you, too, Shibata." 

He places his now lukewarm mug of cocoa on the table beside the tray, and looks up to see Yuriko and Kaname looking at him like they want something. 

Atsushi rolls his eyes and casually sidles over to sit on Satoru's lap, throwing one arm around his shoulders and the other around Takashi's. Tooru slides over to make room as Yuriko takes this as an invitation to pillow her head on Takashi's thigh. Kaname stretches out beside her, the back of his head resting against Takashi's calves and his legs sliding through the gap in the table so his feet can peek out from the other side of it. 

They're all smiles and warmth, and Takashi would feel bad moving now, so he carefully stays very still, listening as his friends softly talk amongst themselves. 

"-and Sasada's hair-"

"-and have you seen that temple's masks? So creepy!" 

They all lose track of time, and Takashi apparently dozes off because suddenly he hears Touko's camera, followed by her gentle, soft laughter. 

"Dinner is ready," she says warmly, and one by one Takashi's friends remove themselves from his person. 

It's strange how, even in this house full of warmth and life and love, he feels cold when they're gone. 

But he brushes it off with a practiced ease and joins his friends and family for Christmas dinner. 

He feels warm and loved for the first time in a very long time, and he decides there's nowhere else he'd rather be.

* * *

Dinner winds down and Shigeru offers to drive everyone home- because it's dark out and it's Christmas- and Tooru and Kaname and Satoru and Atsushi and Katsumi and Yuriko all give Takashi a giant group hug before they leave, and his heart feels so warm and full and light as he joins Touko on the sofa across from the Christmas tree. 

The tree itself isn't terribly special- it looks just like any other tree in Hitoyoshi- but it's decorated with tinsel and garland and handmade ornaments, both wooden and ceramic, and Takashi can see the tiny balls of light Hinoe had charmed when she and the chukyuu helped him find the tree in the first place. At the top is a bright yellow star, and Takashi sees Madara's sigil on it- that special crook-like rune that never fails to make him feel safe and calm and protected. 

Touko slowly wraps an arm around his shoulders, giving him time to pull away if he chooses, and tucks him against her side in the same way a mother bird might bring her chick under her wing. 

She looks down at him fondly, with all the warmth and love a mother could give and then some, more than enough to make up for Takashi not having a biological mother, and almost enough to make up for all of his foster families' mistreatment. 

"We're so blessed to have you, Takashi-kun. So very blessed." She says softly, her words heavy and loving and just for him.   
"And we love you so very much." 

She combs her fingers through his hair and Takashi leans into her warmth to hide the way his eyes water. 

"We'll open presents when Shigeru gets home," she says, no less softly. 

Takashi feels her place a gentle kiss on the crown of his head, like he'd seen his aunts do for his cousins. 

"Merry Christmas, Takashi-kun." 


End file.
